A Natura 2000 meadowland valley along the Młynówka stream in the foothills of the Subcarpathians.
Łąki nad Młynówką
Łąki nad Młynówką is a small but ecologically rich protected area in southern Poland, designated as a Site of Community Importance (SCI) within the Natura 2000 network. Located in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship in Jasło County, it lies within the Pogórze Ciężkowickie foothills and protects a network of traditionally mown and grazed meadows that surround the upper course of the Młynówka stream, locally known as Cegielnianka or, historically, Trzciennica.
The area is essentially a riverine meadowland valley. More than four fifths of the site consists of fresh and wet meadows, sedge-dominated wet communities, and accompanying shrubs, while mixed woodland covers only a small fraction. Because the Młynówka still flows as an unregulated, natural stream, its banks support reed beds, willow and alder carrs, ash-alder gallery forests, and fragments of Central European oak-hornbeam forest, creating a mosaic of habitats typical of the Carpathian foothills.
Although Łąki nad Młynówką is not a national park or a landscape park, it is one of around 55 Sites of Community Importance on the Podkarpacie list formally ratified by the European Commission, underscoring its regional importance for biodiversity conservation. Its combination of traditionally managed meadows and a free-flowing stream gives the site particular value for species tied to semi-natural rural landscapes in the Polish Carpathians.
